Corrupt Silk Road agent Carl Force sentenced to 78 months

(credit: Aurich Lawson)

SAN FRANCISCO—Corrupt Silk Road agent Carl Force was sentenced to 78 months in prison today by a judge who said his difficult upbringing didn't warrant any exception to the sentencing guidelines.

"The extent and the scope of Mr. Force's betrayal of public trust is quite simply breathtaking," said US District Judge Richard Seeborg. "It is compounded by the fact that it appears to have been motivated by greed and thrill seeking, including the pursuit of a book and movie deal."

Force investigated the Silk Road drug-trafficking as part of a Baltimore-based task force. Force took on additional personalities that weren't authorized by his bosses. Using one called "Death From Above," he tried unsuccessfully to extort Ross Ulbricht, who earlier this year was convicted of being Silk Road boss Dread Pirate Roberts and sentenced to life in prison. In another online persona, "French Maid," Force convinced Ulbricht to pay him for "law enforcement counter-intel."